By looking at 'Birches' and 'Out, Out-' by Robert Frost, compare and contrast the ways in which the poet conveys the theme of childhood.

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Robert Frost spent most of his life living in the countryside of New England in America and had personal experience in the rural lifestyle. In the poems “Out, Out-“ and “Birches”, we are given insights to two very different aspects of childhood in the rural countryside – the harsh, burdened, laborious side in one and the carefree, joyful, exultant side in the other. We are also made aware of the universal brevity of childhood and life in general.

In “Out, Out-“, the speaker seems omniscient and detached from the other characters in the poem. He narrates the tragic story of a poor boy whose childhood is deprived of the freedom and carelessness he ought to have. We can see how much the boy longs for freedom from the lines “To please the boy by giving him the half hour That a boy counts so much when saved from work.” – he knows how precious those carefree moments are and appreciates them but cannot have them. The narrative way in which the poem is told shows the reader how unfortunate other people’s childhood can be. “Birches” is very different as it’s the speaker reminiscing about his own childhood – a childhood brimming with excitement and lived to the full. We can feel the energy and vibrancy from the line “… he flung outward, feet first, with a swish,” which is in complete contrast to the “…big boy Doing a man’s work…” in “Out, Out-“. Since this poem was written from the speaker’s own point of view, every reader can relate it to themselves and it also enables us to realise the glory and brevity of childhood. The brevity is also emphasized in both poems in lines which mention nature such as “Five mountain ranges… Under the sunset far into Vermont” and “So low for so long…” – individuals are so insignificant compared to the eternity nature, and childhood is only a short part of an individual’s life, what better way to imply how brief childhood is?

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Both these poems display a tone of acceptance in different ways. In “Out, Out-“, it is a bitter and regretful acceptance. The speaker talks about how the accident could have been avoided – “Call it a day, I wish they might have said” but near the end in a seemingly impassive tone is the line “Little – less – nothing! – and that ended it.” There is the grim reality of life going on and the family in the poem also realizes this and so “…turned to their affairs.” The vulnerability of childhood is clearly portrayed and the forced acceptance ...

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